First Class Foods, Inc of Hawthorne recalls almost 40,000 pounds of ground beef previously distributed to 6 States. This is because of possible Escherichia coli contamination, as reported by International News, December 31, 2010. The organic ground beef is believed to contain certain amounts of Escherichia coli, specifically the E. coli O157:H7 strain which can cause serious conditions in both young children and the elderly. This was revealed when the company performed a sampling test of its product.

E. coli are most of the time harmless, but the E. coli O157:H7 strain can cause kidney failure, food poisoning and profuse bleeding because of intestinal damage. If the bacteria when cultured exceed the normal colony count in an agar plate, then it indicates fecal contamination, and this makes it potentially harmful to the body.

The ground beef is being recalled in New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, California, Wisconsin, and Washington. The establishment number of the ground beef is “EST.18895” and they have been produced December 7 and December 16.

Customers who have questions can call the company through Lucienne Adams at (310) 676 2500.